ONE ECOSYSTEM FROM TWO CULTURES: HARDTECH LABS LAUNCHES CROSS-BORDER ACCELERATOR

San Diego, CA (March 18, 2014) - Combining the development skills of San Diego with the implementation prowess of Tijuana, HardTech Labs LLC today announces the launching of their cross-border hardware accelerator.

HardTech Labs will serve as the organizer and umbrella for key local startup facilitators to build the San Diego/Baja region as an entrepreneurial destination. Fab Lab San Diego, Ansir Innovation Center, Co-Merge Workplace, MINK Global, Ignitus, Origo Ventures and several contract manufacturers will interact in creating a process leading from innovation to full-scale production. Entrepreneurs will have access to mentors from top international companies, research institutes and successful entrepreneurs, who will focus on refining their products for production.

“Fab Lab’s incubator program focuses on rapidly moving entrepreneurs from idea to market via our tools, teams and training for hardware development,” co-founder Katie Rast, Director of Fab Lab San Diego points out, “We will make this accessible to more startups by bringing our expertise to HardTech Labs – and with the funding that is part of the program it will happen even faster.”

Funding will be a key part of that process – providing capital for companies entering the accelerator as well as on their exit. Depending on the company, upfront funding could be as high as $150,000 plus up to $300,000 more on exit if consumer demand leads to mass production.

“The HardTech Labs team sees the region as the natural center for the emerging Internet of Things ecosystem,” said co-founder Derek Footer, Managing Partner of Origo Ventures, “Our goal in the next few years is three classes a year of up to 30 companies per class, with companies staying from 6 months to a year.”

The San Diego/Baja region has a differentiable, sustainable advantage – combining high level software engineers, strong research and development centers and a world class manufacturing and assembly cluster, enabling companies to reduce their cost and time to market by as much as half.

“The San Diego/Baja region is a center of excellence for manufacturing and research-based entrepreneurialism.” according to co-founder Ping Wang of Ansir Innovation Center. “We intend to be the catalyst to ensure the development of the ecosystem.”

HardTech Labs process will use the prowess of contract manufacturers to streamline design at the prototyping, iteration and small run production phases, allowing fewer iterations and speedier early stage development. The compactness of the San Diego/Baja region accelerates the overall process of idea to production – and a faster pace leads to lower overall costs.

“HardTech Labs is providing a bridge between San Diego and Tijuana that offers great promise,” said Tijuana Economic Development Corporation’s CEO Flavio Olivieri, “We are greatly looking forward to fostering a deep relationship with them.”

About HardTech Labs:

HardTech Labs is building the future of San Diego/Baja entrepreneurship – combining the development skills of San Diego with the implementation prowess of Tijuana. By utilizing the assets of the region, HardTech Labs process allows speedier iteration and lower cost to market, with funding leading to large scale production and logistical support. Learn More About HardTech Labs

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Media Contact:

Kristen Caron

978-407-9283

Kristen@7SecondStrategies.com

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